Small businesses would have easier access to capital under a bill being pushed by U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand.
In Niagara Fallls on Tuesday, Gillibrand said, she expects the legislation to pass despite an estimated $1 billion price tag. The Hudson Valley Democrat says it's the kind of investment that could help small businesses and manufacturing in all states.
"It's the kind of bill that I think can receive bipartisan support. Every state is worried about the economy, so it's something that everyone agrees on. We have to fund our manufacturers. We have a competitive disadvantage when we're trying to compete with China and Germany because they subsidize their manufacturing and we do less of that," Gillibrand said.
Under the Scale Up Manufacturing Investment Company Act of 2015, Gillibrand says, private investors would be able to leverage federal dollars which would provide extra incentive to fund new manufacturing businesses.